130 Quotes by Steven D. Levitt

Here’s a guess: anybody who bothers to change his name in the name of economic success is – like the high-school freshmen in Chicago who entered the school-choice lottery – at least highly motivated, and motivation is probably a stronger indicator of success than, well, a name.

The market was particularly strong in Chicago, which had more than a thousand known brothels.

The next time you’re in a real jam, facing an important question that you just can’t answer, go ahead and make up something – and everyone will believe you, because you’re the guy who all those other times was crazy enough to admit you didn’t know the answer.

Purity is a good mask for corruption because it discourages inquiry.

The more social science we learn, the more we realize that people, while treasuring their independence, are in fact drawn to herd behavior in almost every aspect of daily life.

Information is a beacon, a cudgel, an olive branch, a deterrent – all depending on who wields it and how.

There is a difference between correlation and causation – many people mistake one for the other.

Have fun, think small, don’t fear the obvious – these.

That is in part because the very words “education reform” indicate that the question is “What’s wrong with our schools?” when in reality, the question might be better phrased as “Why do American kids know less than kids from Estonia and Poland?” When you ask the question differently, you look for answers in different places.